There are few jobs more critical to the future of our children and our country than teachers. but it’s been more challenging than ever for those in the profession. Teach for America is working to provide a pathway to teaching we'll tell you how Teach for America is addressing the growing need for qualified teachers. Anna Shurak, Executive Director, Teach For America – Philadelphia talks about their program’s efforts to train the next generation of teachers.
Website and social media handles and tags
teachforamerica.org/greater-philadelphia
Instagram: @tfaphillypham
X: @tfaphillypham o
FB: https://www.facebook.com/TFAGreaterPhilly/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/teach-for-america-greater-philadelphia/
You may know Gail Devers as an Olympian and one of the fastest women alive, but did you know her Olympic dream was almost derailed by Grave's Disease and Thyroid Eye Disease (TED) Deavers will be a keynote speaker at the upcoming Pennsylvania Conference for Women and I had the privilege of speaking with her about her journey fighting for a diagnosis and proper treatment and her advocacy for raising awareness about TED and Graves disease. https://www.thyroideyes.com/
https://www.thyroid.org/graves-disease/
https://www.paconferenceforwomen.org/
Bike MS: City to Shore was recently named one of USA TODAY’s 10 best road cycling events for 2023, this annual MS fundraising event, taking place the weekend of September 30th in South Jersey, is one of the largest bike rides on the East Coast and the second largest fundraiser for multiple sclerosis in the world. This year more than 4,000 cyclists are expected to raise more than $4 million to support research, programs and services for people living with MS. I speak to Kevin Moffitt, President Greater Del Val Chapter of the National MS society. (Special shout out to Father Judge High School and teacher Frank Cahill whose team will be joining the thousands of cyclists supporting the event.) Bike MS: City to Shore
Website and social media handles and tags
teachforamerica.org/greater-philadelphia
Instagram: @tfaphillypham
X: @tfaphillypham o
FB: https://www.facebook.com/TFAGreaterPhilly/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/teach-for-america-greater-philadelphia/
You may know Gail Devers as an Olympian and one of the fastest women alive, but did you know her Olympic dream was almost derailed by Grave's Disease and Thyroid Eye Disease (TED) Deavers will be a keynote speaker at the upcoming Pennsylvania Conference for Women and I had the privilege of speaking with her about her journey fighting for a diagnosis and proper treatment and her advocacy for raising awareness about TED and Graves disease. https://www.thyroideyes.com/
https://www.thyroid.org/graves-disease/
https://www.paconferenceforwomen.org/
Bike MS: City to Shore was recently named one of USA TODAY’s 10 best road cycling events for 2023, this annual MS fundraising event, taking place the weekend of September 30th in South Jersey, is one of the largest bike rides on the East Coast and the second largest fundraiser for multiple sclerosis in the world. This year more than 4,000 cyclists are expected to raise more than $4 million to support research, programs and services for people living with MS. I speak to Kevin Moffitt, President Greater Del Val Chapter of the National MS society. (Special shout out to Father Judge High School and teacher Frank Cahill whose team will be joining the thousands of cyclists supporting the event.) Bike MS: City to Shore
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Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Good morning, Welcome to what's goingon? A show about making a difference
in our lives and our communities.I'm Lorraine Ballard marl In my opinion,
there are few jobs more critical tothe future of our kids and our country
than teachers. Teach for America isworking to provide a pathway to teaching,
and we'll tell you how. Youmay know Gail Devers as an Olympian and
one of the fastest women alive,but did you know that her Olympic dream
(00:23):
was almost derailed by graves disease andsomething called ted. She'll be a keynote
speaker at the upcoming Pennsylvania Conference forWomen and I had the privilege of speaking
with her. But first, thereis an amazing event. It's called Bike
MS City to Shore. It wasnamed USA Today's ten Best road Cycling Events
(00:44):
for twenty three. This annual MSfundraising event takes place the weekend of September
thirtieth in South Jersey. Is oneof the largest bike rides on the East
Coast and the second largest fundraiser frommultiple sclerosis in the world. To tell
us more about it, Kevin Moffatt, president of the Greater Delaware Valley Chapter
of a national MS Society before weget into the specifics of this amazing race,
(01:07):
and I have friends who have bikedit and it's quite quite challenging.
Tell us about MS. These days, there's lots of new developments and breakthroughs
in treatment for this neurological disease.Can you tell us a little bit more
about MS? What is it andwhat is being done to help those who
(01:27):
are living with it. Multiple sclerosisis a disease of the central nervous system,
and the simplest way of thinking aboutit is that MS interrupts messages from
the brain to the rest of thebody. For some people that will mean
they will feel a tingling in theirhands. For other people, they may
have trouble walking. Some people losethe sight in one eye. And the
(01:47):
worst thing about MS is you neverreally know what's going to happen next,
so it's very unpredictable. Not beingsaid so, I started at the MS
Society in two thousand and five,and when I started there were four treatments
for MS approved by the FDA.Now there are almost thirty treatments, and
some are really effective in terms ofjust slowing down the progression of the disease.
(02:09):
Now there isn't anything that stops it. There's nothing that reverses the damage
that's been done. But we've comesuch a long way because of events like
Bike MSS City Shure, Yes,and so this event is to raise money
for multiple sclerosis. I imagine thatthis must go towards research, but also
support for people living with MS aswell. Bike MSS is the largest charity
(02:32):
bike series in the world. Alot of that money goes to research now
the MS Society because of events likeBike MSS and walk MS and you know,
people who make individual checks like weare other than the NIH, so
other than the US government. Weare the second largest fundor of MS research
in the world because of all ofthose thousands of people who take part in
(02:53):
events like Bike MSS and walk AMAS. That being said, research always gets
the headlines. However, we wantto make sure we're able to help people
right here, right now through ourMS Navigator program. So if you call
our one eight hundred number, youcan get connected to a social worker who's
professionally trained to help people overcome thechallenges of MS. That's fantastic because a
(03:14):
lot of times when you have achronic disease like MS. The challenge is
not only the physical aspects of it, but the emotional aspects of being able
to navigate a disease that has nocure and might in fact impede your ability
to live your life the way thatyou'd like to. But support is so
critical, isn't it exactly? Andbe able to gain from the experience of
(03:37):
other people. So by being partof the MS Society, get connected to
the thousands of people across the countrywho are living with MS and sometimes facing
the same challenges as you are.If people would like to sign up for
the incredible MS bike Ride, howdo they do that? It's got to
bike ands dot org. Put inyour zip code and the first thing that
will come up will be bike MSCity to Shore. Fantastic. And we
(03:59):
want to give aut out to FatherJudge School because they have a group of
volunteers who are getting on those bicyclesand joining the thousand plus people who are
going to be participating in this veryinspiring and very rigorous event, all to
benefit the MS Society. And wewant to thank you so much for joining
us here today. Kevin Moffatt,President of the Greater Delaware Valley chapter of
(04:24):
the National MS Society Again. Thisevent is bike MS City to Shore.
It is one of the largest bikerides on the East Coast and a great
fundraiser for MS, one of thebiggest in the world. September thirtieth in
South Jersey. Thank you so much. Thank you, you're listening to what's
(04:48):
going on. There's a dwindling numberof qualified educators available to meet the demands
of an expanding student population. Factorscontributing to this shore include low salaries,
challenging working conditions, high burnout rates, and inadequate resources for professional development.
Addressing this issue is crucial to ensuringthat every student has access to a quality
(05:12):
education and that the teaching profession remainsattractive and sustainable in the long term.
One organization that is working hard tohelp make that happen is Teach for America.
Joining us right now is Anna Shurek, Executive director of Teach for America.
Thank you so much for joining ushere today. Yes, thank you
so much for having me. Well. In another life, I was an
(05:34):
education major and have ever since beenvery very committed to bringing to the world
information about education, the importance ofit and teaching, and so I wonder
if you could tell us what isteach for America. Will. We work
to ensure that all students have theopportunity for an excellent education, and we
(05:57):
work to recruit diverse leader who arecommitted to educational equity. And so we
recruit recent college grads and career changersinto our organization. We train them to
be educators. We work with schoolsand place our teachers in schools where teachers
are needed the most. And thenas a result of the experience, many
(06:20):
of our members stay on in theteaching profession and or go on to work
in other important fields that influence outcomesfor students. And so we're very grateful
to have this opportunity to continue toserve in Philadelphia. We've been here for
twenty years, and as a nationalorganization, we've been in existence for thirty
(06:42):
three years. Oh very interesting.So I did touch on some of the
challenges that face the teaching profession,certainly the burnout, some of the challenges
having to do with violence that's existingin our communities and the culture wars that
are out there that many teachers arebeing forced to resign or have been fired
because of coming up against that.And I wonder if we can talk a
(07:04):
bit more about what are some ofthe things you are doing to address some
of these issues and encourage people whomight potentially want to teach, but take
a look at some of the challengesthe teachers face. How do you reach
those individuals? Yeah, great question, Lareen. So you know, first
(07:26):
and foremost, at the end ofthe day, regardless of what side of
the culture wars as you've named,you sit on, we need excellent teachers
in the classroom for our students,for our entire world, in our country
to thrive, as our students arereally the next leaders for all of us,
and so as we're seeing teacher shortagesbroadly, there are really multiple reasons
(07:49):
educators are leaving the workforce, andthere are fewer professionals that are considering teaching
as a viable career. And reallythe pay hours, increased political cessation that
you're named has not made it attractivefor the as a profession for gen Z
and gen Z is set to makeup more than a quarter of the workforce
by twenty twenty five, and soTeach for America has really focused on evolving
(08:15):
to meet the needs of these genZ individuals alongside the needs of our students
and communities, and just to underscorethis gen Z is really the most diverse
generation in history and seeking meaningful careersthat align with their values and so as
a purpose driven generation, they reallyyearn to address major societal issues and create
(08:37):
a positive impact. So at Teachfor America, that leads us to really
think about the systemic issues and thestructure of the teaching profession that is increasingly
out of step with what matters mostto this generation of college graduates, and
thinking about how as a profession,teaching and education has to evolve to really
(09:00):
reinvent the system and think about thingssuch as teaching compensation conditions, supportive environments,
and how we are setting teachers andeducators up to be successful with students
so that we can really experience thefull potential and impact of our schools and
with our kids. So let's talkabout what need people need to do in
(09:24):
order to become a part of Teachfor America. Who are you looking forward
to sign up and what are theirqualifications and what steps do they need to
take? Yeah, thanks so much. So we are looking for individuals who
are invested in our students, inour communities and who fundamentally believe that all
students have the potential to live,grow, and thrive in our world,
(09:48):
and so equity based, diverse educatorswho are willing to do this work,
willing to learn, and have thefortitude and experience to know what it takes
and that it's not going to beeasy. As a individual who came into
the program as a two thousand andfour core member in Philadelphia, I never
thought that I would still be heretwenty years later. In fact, I
(10:11):
had studied political science and policy studiesand didn't want to do education policy till
I taught and quickly learned that howpolicy. Having great policy is essential,
and also having folks doing the workand willing to implement great policy is also
another key piece of the puzzle.I bring this up because we're not looking
(10:31):
for folks to come due two yearsand leave to do something totally different.
We're looking for folks who fundamentally believein the potential of our students and why
education is so essential to the futureof Philadelphia. And if people are interested
in applying, there are various waysto get involved. You can apply through
(10:54):
our website to learn more, throughour recruitment team and or also contact us
directly, and we'd love to bein connection. We also need a coalition
of support and currently are working withmany other organizations because Teach for America doesn't
solve the education problem in isolation.We do it with partners across the city,
(11:16):
and so any sort of involvement,whether you're interested in interested in joining
the core and or just being involvedin our efforts to assure that our students
have the opportunities that they deserve,we welcome that sort of partnership and coalition.
You're celebrating your twentieth anniversary. Howare you celebrating? Yeah, thanks
so much, So, you know, twenty years and as I mentioned briefly,
(11:39):
I personally can am so inspired bywhat has happened over the last twenty
years. And as we celebrate thisyear, we are hosting a series of
events in partnership with other organizations andalso in efforts to really bring to light
all of the great work in ourcity that is happening. And as a
(12:01):
result of Teach for America's contributions inpartnership with other folks who are leading and
doing work across the city. Andso, you know, as we think
of the future ahead, what wealso know is that we have to have
changed for our students, and sowe have set an ambitious ten year goal
(12:24):
beyond the current twentieth year celebration,that by twenty thirty two, twice as
many children in the communities that wework will be proficient in reading by the
end of third grade, indicating theyare on a path to economic mobility and
co creating a future filled with possibility. As much as we celebrate the last
twenty years, the progress that weneed in Philadelphia for our students is essential,
(12:48):
and so we are doubling down downon how we work coalition to achieve
our goal and really focusing on expandingour network and continuing to ensure that those
that we work with are providing thebest outcomes for students and providing support through
(13:09):
multiple of our programs and working withothers to do this. If people want
more information, what's that website?Our website is Teeth for America dot org.
Fantastic and Ashurereck, executive director forTeach for America Philadelphia, thank you
so much, Thank you so much. The twentieth Annual Pennsylvania Conference for Women
(13:37):
is going to be held in personOctober nineteenth at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
It's part of the nation's largest networkof women's conferences in the country, with
events in California, Massachusetts, Texas, and of course here in Pennsylvania,
as well as year round programming.In honor of the conference, we are
speaking with trailblazing women who've broken throughglass ceiling, shattered stereotype, and paved
(14:00):
the way for progress and equality.Gail Devers is an American sporting icon,
a five time Olympian, a ninetime World champion, and three time Olympic
gold medalists in track and field,who was one of the fastest women alive
for almost two decades. Amid thisunprecedented feat, Divers has also been living
(14:22):
with Graves disease and symptoms of thyroideye disease otherwise known as TED for more
than thirty years. After quite achallenging two and a half year quest for
answers about her health, Devers wasdiagnosed with Graves disease in nineteen ninety.
Her journey back to the track wasnothing short of spectacular, especially after overcoming
(14:43):
near career ending symptoms, and we'regoing to talk about that and so much
more. Gail Devers is a keynotespeaker on the main stage of the Pennsylvania
Conference for Women. Thank you somuch for spending time with us this morning.
Great to me you and I'm veryinterested in hearing about your journey.
There are so many people who experiencechronic disease. The challenge of finding a
(15:09):
diagnosis can be very difficult, andthen on top of that, living with
a chronic disease can have an impactnot only on your physical health, but
also your mental wellness. Tell usmore about your journey. First of all,
thank you for having me. I'mexcited to be here, looking forward
to the upcoming conference in Philadelphia.My advice or what I want to share
(15:31):
when I get there is basically,it's when it comes to women everywhere in
the world and we're talking about ourhealth, that is so important to be
your own best advocate. And Iknow that from experience. And you talk
to a little bit about what I'vegone through. They said for thirty years,
thirty years now, I have beenliving with grave disease, and to
(15:54):
Edi, I always say, I'vebeen living with a man named Ted who's
not my husband for thirty years nowand really didn't know it. And you
talk about the impact of living withthe chronic condition. You know, many
people with Graves disease don't even knowit, and they don't know that they
had that they're at a much higherrisk of developing TED. You know,
about fifty percent of people with Gravesdisease may develop TED. And the hard
(16:18):
part for me was not knowing becausewhat I thought was, you know,
just as my career was taking off, you know, I was doing well,
but I knew something was off andsomething wasn't right, and I started
rapidly losing weight. At my worst, I went from one twenty to about
seventy nine on one scale, eightytwo on the other scale. Something's wrong,
(16:40):
there's a problem, you know.And I went from doctor to doctor
for twenty and a half years andbeing told, oh, there's nothing wrong,
you're fine. You know, maybeyou peak too many times. There
was always an answer for what wasgoing on, but it wasn't the answer
of what could make me feel better, what would make me catch up to
the old gale and feel like myold self again. And I had symptoms
(17:03):
also where I had bulging eyes,I pain, light sensitivity, all kinds
of things that were going on.It took me two and a half years.
Like I said, I went backand forth to doctors, and finally,
in nineteen ninety I was diagnosed withGraves disease and I started to get
my life back on track. Twoyears after that, I won my first
Olympic gold medal. And I alwayssay, I wish I could say that
(17:25):
that was the end of it,but it's not, because thirty years later,
I'm still talking about it. Becausethose I was still having symptoms and
I thought myself that, Okay,if I get my Graves disease treated,
then that's going to treat the eyesymptoms too, because they're all obviously all
related, and I didn't know thatthey were meant to be treated separately or
differently. It took me thirty years. I mean, just a couple of
years ago. I just found outthat those eye symptoms were not being treated
(17:49):
as my Graves disease was being treated. You know, my Grave disease was
better, and my eye symptoms persisted. At a certain point, it was
very hard for me to see thehurdles that I was going over. And
I tell people that because I'm like, you know, imagine being me,
a world class hurler and you haveto run a one hundred percent, and
you have to leave the ground,and you're not just jumping up in the
(18:11):
air and coming back down. Youactually have to hurdle over barriers that you
can barely make out. So Ihad to learn to run in rhythm instead
of relying on my site. Soit became a problem. I stopped going
out of my house because the personand the reflection looking back at me was
horrible. That wasn't me, Andyou're telling me that there's nothing wrong.
(18:33):
I'm being treated by Graves disease,and but I still don't feel like myself
and there's I mean, obviously thisis my new set of normal, but
it can be very debilitating. AndI went through a lot, and I
just think that no one should haveto go through that. And the way
to do that is to educate,to read up. You know, we
as women, sometimes we make excusesfor ourselves to say, you know,
(18:55):
we take care of everybody else anddon't take care of ourselves. We've got
to take care of ourselves or elsewe're no good to anyone else. And
that's what this is about, youknow. I think life lessons, all
the things that I've gone through haveput me in a position to be able
to help others. Well, thatis certainly going to be something that you
will touch on in your keynote speech. And I just wonder if we could
just dig a little deeper into thatwhole message which you just talked about,
(19:18):
and that is about educating yourself.But also I think we as women,
and also as women of color,often experience resistance from the medical profession or
disparities in how we are listened toor heard, and so there are additional
challenges being a woman, being awoman of color to be adequately heard and
(19:40):
effectively heard by the medical profession ina way that will lead to a proper
diagnosis, the proper treatment. Right, you're soul right, I mean all
of those. It's one of thosethings that when people don't hear you,
like you said, making them listen, you have to you have to be
your own advocate. And what doesthat mean. Sometimes that's going to mean
(20:00):
that you have to read up,you have to educate yourself. You have
to seek a second, third,fourth, fifth opinion and keep going down
the list until you get the helpthat you need and the answers that you
need. And that right care team. I was so much better, Yes,
it's rare disease, it's debilitating disease, both of them. But I
(20:21):
was in much better shape when Iwas under a doctor's care then when I
was on my own, searching foranswers and trying to figure out what was
going on. And yes, therewill be people, whether it's because of
that I'm black, that I'm female. They think you're supposed to be strong,
or you're just you're just whining andyou're making this up. No I'm
not. I know my body betterthan the doctor that I may see once
(20:42):
or twice a year, which iswhy we have to be an advocate and
make them listen. And if thisdoctor doesn't want to listen, okay,
I'm going to somebody else, butourselves. We've got to write stuff down,
write it down so when we goin we can tell them everything that
we were experiencing, so they cansee the whole picture because may not present
itself at that time, or wemay forget. Oh, also that's what
(21:03):
was going on, and make themlisten. I tell people, now,
I don't go to a doctor ifthey don't sit down and have a conversation
with me first. You're not justgonna push me through because I had happened
to me for so many years,and I didn't get the answers that I
deserved, and didn't get the carethat I deserved. They say, never
say what if? Okay, butI'm gonna say what if? What if
I was able to see the hurdlesthat I was going over and didn't have
(21:26):
to figure out a rhythm to run. What if I had got my diagnosis
sooner than you guys telling me fortwo and a half years that nothing was
wrong, and I had to leavetrack and feel how many medals could I
have won? How much could Ihave gotten my life back? There was
a time that I had to stopdriving. I kept saying, I'm too
young not to dry, but Icouldn't see the lights of the cars coming
(21:48):
at me were blinding. So whatif instead of thirty years, once I
knew that I had grave disease,I paid attention to my eyes and knew
that they had to be treated separately, and I have to find an ochoplastic
surgeon or a neuro optimologist. Icould have got that care, and my
endocrinologist and my optimologists could have beenworking together side by side, someone who
(22:10):
had experience in TED, and Icould have gotten my life back together.
Instead of two and a half yearsfor one and thirty on the other,
it could have been a matter ofmonths. What if I don't want to
live in what it is and Ihave to I don't want anybody else to
do that. So we have tomake sure that we are hurt. God
gave us voices for a reasons,So we're gonna sing it out loud and
(22:30):
proud that this is what's going on. And I deserve I have one life
to live and deserve that best qualityof care. And I'm going to find
the right person to join my careteam. It's like the pieces of the
puzzle have to fit, you know. It sounds like a lot of the
qualities had probably supported you and becomingan Olympic gold medalist you utilized in your
(22:52):
own health journey. You said somethingthat I thought was interesting, and that
was looking into the mirror and notseeing yourself. And as I touched on
before, people who are living withchronic illness often have to experience depression and
stress because of not being understood ornot being able to get the answers that
you want. And I wonder,what are some of the things the key
(23:15):
elements that you utilize in order tokind of help you get through that.
And we know that it was challengingme. We know it's challenging for so
many people. But what for youwas the I don't know, the catalyst
or the tools that you used toget through all that. There was a
time. And yes, depression doessit in when people don't hear you,
(23:37):
and words are powerful, like youknow, I said, I covered up
all my mirrors in my house becauseI didn't like the person that was looking
back at me. I could notfind Gail Deevers, and I wanted to
catch up to Gail. And Istopped going out because I have to answer
questions. I didn't have the answersto the questions that people were asking me.
At one point, it was becauseI had lost so much weight.
(23:59):
People were actually asking me, areyou anorectic? Are you on drugs?
No? Why do you look likethis? Did you go to the doctor?
You know? And then my eyeswere bolting, they were read.
I remember going to the park oneday and I don't know if it's because
my eyes were so crazy looking thatthis little kid actually said, Mommy looks
wrong with her. She looks likea monster. And wow, it got
(24:22):
to the point where I'm like,Okay, I'm better off just not going
out. And then for me,as an Olympian in the public eye,
I'm supposed to be camera ready atall times. But the pain in my
eye was so bad that even whenthey were putting on makeup, it hurts
so bad that you say, okay, I'm not available for this. I'm
not available for that. It waschanging me from the person that I am.
(24:47):
And when you retreat to your house, that's not Gail. When I
retreat to my house, there's aproblem. But I had to remember because
I've always been a very goal orientedperson where I set goals for myself with
things that I want to accomplished.I write them down on stick you know.
I placed them in several places inmy house and I signed them and
people are like, why do yousign it. I'm like, because it's
(25:07):
a contract that I've made with myselfthat I'm committed to this. And I
had made that commitment before I startedhaving symptoms of the grave disease and ted
I had to remember while I wasin my house hiding out from the world
that this is not me. Andyes, they're telling me, oh,
maybe you're making this up. Butthe last time I looked in the mirror
(25:29):
before that, I didn't look thatway. And then a short time later,
I'm looking like the alligator woman,which is what I even turned my
own self. There's a problem.So you know what, I'm not making
this up. I signed a contractwith myself that I was committed to doing
something, and the goals that Iset for myself were realistic goals that I
prayed over. So you know what, I gotta get up and get back
(25:52):
out there. I gotta find thatstrength. I always tell people that I
think everybody is a champion, andyou have that championship strength. It's just
sometimes the life closes in on youand you gotta reach real far down to
find that strength to get yourself backup and get yourself back out there.
And that's what I did. Icalled on that strength that I know I
(26:17):
have, that I question and letpeople let me question it. But I
didn't get in and I honestly believethat that we don't have more placed on
us than we can handle. AndI had to really remember that at that
time and say, Okay, youknow what, I'm gonna get up.
I'm gonna get out there and I'mgonna get back. I'm not gonna stop.
I'm gonna knock on every door ifI have to until I find the
(26:37):
answers that I need. And that'swhat I did, and everybody can do
that. One of the reasons whythis conference for women is so important because
there was a time where I feltlike I was on an island by myself,
and I've learned I'm not. Thereare other women who have. It
may not be the exact same circumstance, but we have the if we talk
about it. Everybody's had someone thatyou know, they didn't listen to your
(27:00):
you know, just man, whateveryou want to say, and so there
are times that you find out thatwe're not alone. And because we're not
alone, there's power in numbers becauseyou weren't hurt. I'm gonna speak up.
I'm gonna get educate and make peopleaware of certain things and let them
know that it's okay. You deservethe best and it's okay for you to
(27:22):
demand the best. If people wouldlike more information, you you're an advocate
for those living with Graves disease andTED. Where can people go for more
information? Definitely? You know,if you have Graves disease like me if
you were just diagnosed with it.First of all, focus on your eyehealth
because up to fifty percent of peoplewith Graves disease may develop TED. You
(27:45):
don't want to say it. Livingwith you, I had to. I'm
trying to kick him out, soyou know he's not paying rent. He's
got to go. But find thatright care team and then educate yourself.
It's it's not even And I thankyou because I tell people it may not
be you. You may not haveGraves disease or TED for your soul,
for anyone in your family, butI can guarantee you you're going to come
(28:07):
in contact with someone complaining of thesame symptoms and if you can help alleviate
their suffering, that's what it's allabout. So I encourage everyone to go
to the website. Focus on TEDdot com, so focus on TA dot
com so that we can make surethat an unwanted guests is taken care of.
Gail Devers, thank you so muchfor joining us. Gail Divers an
(28:29):
American sporting icon of five time Olympia, nine time World champion, and three
time Olympic gold medalist in track andfield who is one of the fastest women
alive for almost two decades, anadvocate for those living with Graves disease and
TED, and a keynote speaker atthe Pennsylvania Conference for Women. For more
information, you can go to PAConference for Women dot org. Gail Devers,
(28:52):
you are an inspiration. Thank youso much. Thank you for having
me and I will see everyone inPhilly. You can listen to all of
today's interviews by going to our stationwebsite and typing in keyword Community. You
can also listen on the iHeartRadio appgay Words Philadelphia Community Podcast. Follow me
on Twitter and Instagram at Lorraine Ballard. I'm Lorraine Ballard Morrow, and I
(29:14):
stand for service to our community andmedia that empowers. What will you stand
for? You've been listening to what'sgoing on ED. Thank you
Good morning, Welcome to what's goingon? A show about making a difference
in our lives and our communities.I'm Lorraine Ballard marl In my opinion,
there are few jobs more critical tothe future of our kids and our country
than teachers. Teach for America isworking to provide a pathway to teaching,
and we'll tell you how. Youmay know Gail Devers as an Olympian and
one of the fastest women alive,but did you know that her Olympic dream
(00:23):
was almost derailed by graves disease andsomething called ted. She'll be a keynote
speaker at the upcoming Pennsylvania Conference forWomen and I had the privilege of speaking
with her. But first, thereis an amazing event. It's called Bike
MS City to Shore. It wasnamed USA Today's ten Best road Cycling Events
(00:44):
for twenty three. This annual MSfundraising event takes place the weekend of September
thirtieth in South Jersey. Is oneof the largest bike rides on the East
Coast and the second largest fundraiser frommultiple sclerosis in the world. To tell
us more about it, Kevin Moffatt, president of the Greater Delaware Valley Chapter
of a national MS Society before weget into the specifics of this amazing race,
(01:07):
and I have friends who have bikedit and it's quite quite challenging.
Tell us about MS. These days, there's lots of new developments and breakthroughs
in treatment for this neurological disease.Can you tell us a little bit more
about MS? What is it andwhat is being done to help those who
(01:27):
are living with it. Multiple sclerosisis a disease of the central nervous system,
and the simplest way of thinking aboutit is that MS interrupts messages from
the brain to the rest of thebody. For some people that will mean
they will feel a tingling in theirhands. For other people, they may
have trouble walking. Some people losethe sight in one eye. And the
(01:47):
worst thing about MS is you neverreally know what's going to happen next,
so it's very unpredictable. Not beingsaid so, I started at the MS
Society in two thousand and five,and when I started there were four treatments
for MS approved by the FDA.Now there are almost thirty treatments, and
some are really effective in terms ofjust slowing down the progression of the disease.
(02:09):
Now there isn't anything that stops it. There's nothing that reverses the damage
that's been done. But we've comesuch a long way because of events like
Bike MSS City Shure, Yes,and so this event is to raise money
for multiple sclerosis. I imagine thatthis must go towards research, but also
support for people living with MS aswell. Bike MSS is the largest charity
(02:32):
bike series in the world. Alot of that money goes to research now
the MS Society because of events likeBike MSS and walk MS and you know,
people who make individual checks like weare other than the NIH, so
other than the US government. Weare the second largest fundor of MS research
in the world because of all ofthose thousands of people who take part in
(02:53):
events like Bike MSS and walk AMAS. That being said, research always gets
the headlines. However, we wantto make sure we're able to help people
right here, right now through ourMS Navigator program. So if you call
our one eight hundred number, youcan get connected to a social worker who's
professionally trained to help people overcome thechallenges of MS. That's fantastic because a
(03:14):
lot of times when you have achronic disease like MS. The challenge is
not only the physical aspects of it, but the emotional aspects of being able
to navigate a disease that has nocure and might in fact impede your ability
to live your life the way thatyou'd like to. But support is so
critical, isn't it exactly? Andbe able to gain from the experience of
(03:37):
other people. So by being partof the MS Society, get connected to
the thousands of people across the countrywho are living with MS and sometimes facing
the same challenges as you are.If people would like to sign up for
the incredible MS bike Ride, howdo they do that? It's got to
bike ands dot org. Put inyour zip code and the first thing that
will come up will be bike MSCity to Shore. Fantastic. And we
(03:59):
want to give aut out to FatherJudge School because they have a group of
volunteers who are getting on those bicyclesand joining the thousand plus people who are
going to be participating in this veryinspiring and very rigorous event, all to
benefit the MS Society. And wewant to thank you so much for joining
us here today. Kevin Moffatt,President of the Greater Delaware Valley chapter of
(04:24):
the National MS Society Again. Thisevent is bike MS City to Shore.
It is one of the largest bikerides on the East Coast and a great
fundraiser for MS, one of thebiggest in the world. September thirtieth in
South Jersey. Thank you so much. Thank you, you're listening to what's
(04:48):
going on. There's a dwindling numberof qualified educators available to meet the demands
of an expanding student population. Factorscontributing to this shore include low salaries,
challenging working conditions, high burnout rates, and inadequate resources for professional development.
Addressing this issue is crucial to ensuringthat every student has access to a quality
(05:12):
education and that the teaching profession remainsattractive and sustainable in the long term.
One organization that is working hard tohelp make that happen is Teach for America.
Joining us right now is Anna Shurek, Executive director of Teach for America.
Thank you so much for joining ushere today. Yes, thank you
so much for having me. Well. In another life, I was an
(05:34):
education major and have ever since beenvery very committed to bringing to the world
information about education, the importance ofit and teaching, and so I wonder
if you could tell us what isteach for America. Will. We work
to ensure that all students have theopportunity for an excellent education, and we
(05:57):
work to recruit diverse leader who arecommitted to educational equity. And so we
recruit recent college grads and career changersinto our organization. We train them to
be educators. We work with schoolsand place our teachers in schools where teachers
are needed the most. And thenas a result of the experience, many
(06:20):
of our members stay on in theteaching profession and or go on to work
in other important fields that influence outcomesfor students. And so we're very grateful
to have this opportunity to continue toserve in Philadelphia. We've been here for
twenty years, and as a nationalorganization, we've been in existence for thirty
(06:42):
three years. Oh very interesting.So I did touch on some of the
challenges that face the teaching profession,certainly the burnout, some of the challenges
having to do with violence that's existingin our communities and the culture wars that
are out there that many teachers arebeing forced to resign or have been fired
because of coming up against that.And I wonder if we can talk a
(07:04):
bit more about what are some ofthe things you are doing to address some
of these issues and encourage people whomight potentially want to teach, but take
a look at some of the challengesthe teachers face. How do you reach
those individuals? Yeah, great question, Lareen. So you know, first
(07:26):
and foremost, at the end ofthe day, regardless of what side of
the culture wars as you've named,you sit on, we need excellent teachers
in the classroom for our students,for our entire world, in our country
to thrive, as our students arereally the next leaders for all of us,
and so as we're seeing teacher shortagesbroadly, there are really multiple reasons
(07:49):
educators are leaving the workforce, andthere are fewer professionals that are considering teaching
as a viable career. And reallythe pay hours, increased political cessation that
you're named has not made it attractivefor the as a profession for gen Z
and gen Z is set to makeup more than a quarter of the workforce
by twenty twenty five, and soTeach for America has really focused on evolving
(08:15):
to meet the needs of these genZ individuals alongside the needs of our students
and communities, and just to underscorethis gen Z is really the most diverse
generation in history and seeking meaningful careersthat align with their values and so as
a purpose driven generation, they reallyyearn to address major societal issues and create
(08:37):
a positive impact. So at Teachfor America, that leads us to really
think about the systemic issues and thestructure of the teaching profession that is increasingly
out of step with what matters mostto this generation of college graduates, and
thinking about how as a profession,teaching and education has to evolve to really
(09:00):
reinvent the system and think about thingssuch as teaching compensation conditions, supportive environments,
and how we are setting teachers andeducators up to be successful with students
so that we can really experience thefull potential and impact of our schools and
with our kids. So let's talkabout what need people need to do in
(09:24):
order to become a part of Teachfor America. Who are you looking forward
to sign up and what are theirqualifications and what steps do they need to
take? Yeah, thanks so much. So we are looking for individuals who
are invested in our students, inour communities and who fundamentally believe that all
students have the potential to live,grow, and thrive in our world,
(09:48):
and so equity based, diverse educatorswho are willing to do this work,
willing to learn, and have thefortitude and experience to know what it takes
and that it's not going to beeasy. As a individual who came into
the program as a two thousand andfour core member in Philadelphia, I never
thought that I would still be heretwenty years later. In fact, I
(10:11):
had studied political science and policy studiesand didn't want to do education policy till
I taught and quickly learned that howpolicy. Having great policy is essential,
and also having folks doing the workand willing to implement great policy is also
another key piece of the puzzle.I bring this up because we're not looking
(10:31):
for folks to come due two yearsand leave to do something totally different.
We're looking for folks who fundamentally believein the potential of our students and why
education is so essential to the futureof Philadelphia. And if people are interested
in applying, there are various waysto get involved. You can apply through
(10:54):
our website to learn more, throughour recruitment team and or also contact us
directly, and we'd love to bein connection. We also need a coalition
of support and currently are working withmany other organizations because Teach for America doesn't
solve the education problem in isolation.We do it with partners across the city,
(11:16):
and so any sort of involvement,whether you're interested in interested in joining
the core and or just being involvedin our efforts to assure that our students
have the opportunities that they deserve,we welcome that sort of partnership and coalition.
You're celebrating your twentieth anniversary. Howare you celebrating? Yeah, thanks
so much, So, you know, twenty years and as I mentioned briefly,
(11:39):
I personally can am so inspired bywhat has happened over the last twenty
years. And as we celebrate thisyear, we are hosting a series of
events in partnership with other organizations andalso in efforts to really bring to light
all of the great work in ourcity that is happening. And as a
(12:01):
result of Teach for America's contributions inpartnership with other folks who are leading and
doing work across the city. Andso, you know, as we think
of the future ahead, what wealso know is that we have to have
changed for our students, and sowe have set an ambitious ten year goal
(12:24):
beyond the current twentieth year celebration,that by twenty thirty two, twice as
many children in the communities that wework will be proficient in reading by the
end of third grade, indicating theyare on a path to economic mobility and
co creating a future filled with possibility. As much as we celebrate the last
twenty years, the progress that weneed in Philadelphia for our students is essential,
(12:48):
and so we are doubling down downon how we work coalition to achieve
our goal and really focusing on expandingour network and continuing to ensure that those
that we work with are providing thebest outcomes for students and providing support through
(13:09):
multiple of our programs and working withothers to do this. If people want
more information, what's that website?Our website is Teeth for America dot org.
Fantastic and Ashurereck, executive director forTeach for America Philadelphia, thank you
so much, Thank you so much. The twentieth Annual Pennsylvania Conference for Women
(13:37):
is going to be held in personOctober nineteenth at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
It's part of the nation's largest networkof women's conferences in the country, with
events in California, Massachusetts, Texas, and of course here in Pennsylvania,
as well as year round programming.In honor of the conference, we are
speaking with trailblazing women who've broken throughglass ceiling, shattered stereotype, and paved
(14:00):
the way for progress and equality.Gail Devers is an American sporting icon,
a five time Olympian, a ninetime World champion, and three time Olympic
gold medalists in track and field,who was one of the fastest women alive
for almost two decades. Amid thisunprecedented feat, Divers has also been living
(14:22):
with Graves disease and symptoms of thyroideye disease otherwise known as TED for more
than thirty years. After quite achallenging two and a half year quest for
answers about her health, Devers wasdiagnosed with Graves disease in nineteen ninety.
Her journey back to the track wasnothing short of spectacular, especially after overcoming
(14:43):
near career ending symptoms, and we'regoing to talk about that and so much
more. Gail Devers is a keynotespeaker on the main stage of the Pennsylvania
Conference for Women. Thank you somuch for spending time with us this morning.
Great to me you and I'm veryinterested in hearing about your journey.
There are so many people who experiencechronic disease. The challenge of finding a
(15:09):
diagnosis can be very difficult, andthen on top of that, living with
a chronic disease can have an impactnot only on your physical health, but
also your mental wellness. Tell usmore about your journey. First of all,
thank you for having me. I'mexcited to be here, looking forward
to the upcoming conference in Philadelphia.My advice or what I want to share
(15:31):
when I get there is basically,it's when it comes to women everywhere in
the world and we're talking about ourhealth, that is so important to be
your own best advocate. And Iknow that from experience. And you talk
to a little bit about what I'vegone through. They said for thirty years,
thirty years now, I have beenliving with grave disease, and to
(15:54):
Edi, I always say, I'vebeen living with a man named Ted who's
not my husband for thirty years nowand really didn't know it. And you
talk about the impact of living withthe chronic condition. You know, many
people with Graves disease don't even knowit, and they don't know that they
had that they're at a much higherrisk of developing TED. You know,
about fifty percent of people with Gravesdisease may develop TED. And the hard
(16:18):
part for me was not knowing becausewhat I thought was, you know,
just as my career was taking off, you know, I was doing well,
but I knew something was off andsomething wasn't right, and I started
rapidly losing weight. At my worst, I went from one twenty to about
seventy nine on one scale, eightytwo on the other scale. Something's wrong,
(16:40):
there's a problem, you know.And I went from doctor to doctor
for twenty and a half years andbeing told, oh, there's nothing wrong,
you're fine. You know, maybeyou peak too many times. There
was always an answer for what wasgoing on, but it wasn't the answer
of what could make me feel better, what would make me catch up to
the old gale and feel like myold self again. And I had symptoms
(17:03):
also where I had bulging eyes,I pain, light sensitivity, all kinds
of things that were going on.It took me two and a half years.
Like I said, I went backand forth to doctors, and finally,
in nineteen ninety I was diagnosed withGraves disease and I started to get
my life back on track. Twoyears after that, I won my first
Olympic gold medal. And I alwayssay, I wish I could say that
(17:25):
that was the end of it,but it's not, because thirty years later,
I'm still talking about it. Becausethose I was still having symptoms and
I thought myself that, Okay,if I get my Graves disease treated,
then that's going to treat the eyesymptoms too, because they're all obviously all
related, and I didn't know thatthey were meant to be treated separately or
differently. It took me thirty years. I mean, just a couple of
years ago. I just found outthat those eye symptoms were not being treated
(17:49):
as my Graves disease was being treated. You know, my Grave disease was
better, and my eye symptoms persisted. At a certain point, it was
very hard for me to see thehurdles that I was going over. And
I tell people that because I'm like, you know, imagine being me,
a world class hurler and you haveto run a one hundred percent, and
you have to leave the ground,and you're not just jumping up in the
(18:11):
air and coming back down. Youactually have to hurdle over barriers that you
can barely make out. So Ihad to learn to run in rhythm instead
of relying on my site. Soit became a problem. I stopped going
out of my house because the personand the reflection looking back at me was
horrible. That wasn't me, Andyou're telling me that there's nothing wrong.
(18:33):
I'm being treated by Graves disease,and but I still don't feel like myself
and there's I mean, obviously thisis my new set of normal, but
it can be very debilitating. AndI went through a lot, and I
just think that no one should haveto go through that. And the way
to do that is to educate,to read up. You know, we
as women, sometimes we make excusesfor ourselves to say, you know,
(18:55):
we take care of everybody else anddon't take care of ourselves. We've got
to take care of ourselves or elsewe're no good to anyone else. And
that's what this is about, youknow. I think life lessons, all
the things that I've gone through haveput me in a position to be able
to help others. Well, thatis certainly going to be something that you
will touch on in your keynote speech. And I just wonder if we could
just dig a little deeper into thatwhole message which you just talked about,
(19:18):
and that is about educating yourself.But also I think we as women,
and also as women of color,often experience resistance from the medical profession or
disparities in how we are listened toor heard, and so there are additional
challenges being a woman, being awoman of color to be adequately heard and
(19:40):
effectively heard by the medical profession ina way that will lead to a proper
diagnosis, the proper treatment. Right, you're soul right, I mean all
of those. It's one of thosethings that when people don't hear you,
like you said, making them listen, you have to you have to be
your own advocate. And what doesthat mean. Sometimes that's going to mean
(20:00):
that you have to read up,you have to educate yourself. You have
to seek a second, third,fourth, fifth opinion and keep going down
the list until you get the helpthat you need and the answers that you
need. And that right care team. I was so much better, Yes,
it's rare disease, it's debilitating disease, both of them. But I
(20:21):
was in much better shape when Iwas under a doctor's care then when I
was on my own, searching foranswers and trying to figure out what was
going on. And yes, therewill be people, whether it's because of
that I'm black, that I'm female. They think you're supposed to be strong,
or you're just you're just whining andyou're making this up. No I'm
not. I know my body betterthan the doctor that I may see once
(20:42):
or twice a year, which iswhy we have to be an advocate and
make them listen. And if thisdoctor doesn't want to listen, okay,
I'm going to somebody else, butourselves. We've got to write stuff down,
write it down so when we goin we can tell them everything that
we were experiencing, so they cansee the whole picture because may not present
itself at that time, or wemay forget. Oh, also that's what
(21:03):
was going on, and make themlisten. I tell people, now,
I don't go to a doctor ifthey don't sit down and have a conversation
with me first. You're not justgonna push me through because I had happened
to me for so many years,and I didn't get the answers that I
deserved, and didn't get the carethat I deserved. They say, never
say what if? Okay, butI'm gonna say what if? What if
I was able to see the hurdlesthat I was going over and didn't have
(21:26):
to figure out a rhythm to run. What if I had got my diagnosis
sooner than you guys telling me fortwo and a half years that nothing was
wrong, and I had to leavetrack and feel how many medals could I
have won? How much could Ihave gotten my life back? There was
a time that I had to stopdriving. I kept saying, I'm too
young not to dry, but Icouldn't see the lights of the cars coming
(21:48):
at me were blinding. So whatif instead of thirty years, once I
knew that I had grave disease,I paid attention to my eyes and knew
that they had to be treated separately, and I have to find an ochoplastic
surgeon or a neuro optimologist. Icould have got that care, and my
endocrinologist and my optimologists could have beenworking together side by side, someone who
(22:10):
had experience in TED, and Icould have gotten my life back together.
Instead of two and a half yearsfor one and thirty on the other,
it could have been a matter ofmonths. What if I don't want to
live in what it is and Ihave to I don't want anybody else to
do that. So we have tomake sure that we are hurt. God
gave us voices for a reasons,So we're gonna sing it out loud and
(22:30):
proud that this is what's going on. And I deserve I have one life
to live and deserve that best qualityof care. And I'm going to find
the right person to join my careteam. It's like the pieces of the
puzzle have to fit, you know. It sounds like a lot of the
qualities had probably supported you and becomingan Olympic gold medalist you utilized in your
(22:52):
own health journey. You said somethingthat I thought was interesting, and that
was looking into the mirror and notseeing yourself. And as I touched on
before, people who are living withchronic illness often have to experience depression and
stress because of not being understood ornot being able to get the answers that
you want. And I wonder,what are some of the things the key
(23:15):
elements that you utilize in order tokind of help you get through that.
And we know that it was challengingme. We know it's challenging for so
many people. But what for youwas the I don't know, the catalyst
or the tools that you used toget through all that. There was a
time. And yes, depression doessit in when people don't hear you,
(23:37):
and words are powerful, like youknow, I said, I covered up
all my mirrors in my house becauseI didn't like the person that was looking
back at me. I could notfind Gail Deevers, and I wanted to
catch up to Gail. And Istopped going out because I have to answer
questions. I didn't have the answersto the questions that people were asking me.
At one point, it was becauseI had lost so much weight.
(23:59):
People were actually asking me, areyou anorectic? Are you on drugs?
No? Why do you look likethis? Did you go to the doctor?
You know? And then my eyeswere bolting, they were read.
I remember going to the park oneday and I don't know if it's because
my eyes were so crazy looking thatthis little kid actually said, Mommy looks
wrong with her. She looks likea monster. And wow, it got
(24:22):
to the point where I'm like,Okay, I'm better off just not going
out. And then for me,as an Olympian in the public eye,
I'm supposed to be camera ready atall times. But the pain in my
eye was so bad that even whenthey were putting on makeup, it hurts
so bad that you say, okay, I'm not available for this. I'm
not available for that. It waschanging me from the person that I am.
(24:47):
And when you retreat to your house, that's not Gail. When I
retreat to my house, there's aproblem. But I had to remember because
I've always been a very goal orientedperson where I set goals for myself with
things that I want to accomplished.I write them down on stick you know.
I placed them in several places inmy house and I signed them and
people are like, why do yousign it. I'm like, because it's
(25:07):
a contract that I've made with myselfthat I'm committed to this. And I
had made that commitment before I startedhaving symptoms of the grave disease and ted
I had to remember while I wasin my house hiding out from the world
that this is not me. Andyes, they're telling me, oh,
maybe you're making this up. Butthe last time I looked in the mirror
(25:29):
before that, I didn't look thatway. And then a short time later,
I'm looking like the alligator woman,which is what I even turned my
own self. There's a problem.So you know what, I'm not making
this up. I signed a contractwith myself that I was committed to doing
something, and the goals that Iset for myself were realistic goals that I
prayed over. So you know what, I gotta get up and get back
(25:52):
out there. I gotta find thatstrength. I always tell people that I
think everybody is a champion, andyou have that championship strength. It's just
sometimes the life closes in on youand you gotta reach real far down to
find that strength to get yourself backup and get yourself back out there.
And that's what I did. Icalled on that strength that I know I
(26:17):
have, that I question and letpeople let me question it. But I
didn't get in and I honestly believethat that we don't have more placed on
us than we can handle. AndI had to really remember that at that
time and say, Okay, youknow what, I'm gonna get up.
I'm gonna get out there and I'mgonna get back. I'm not gonna stop.
I'm gonna knock on every door ifI have to until I find the
(26:37):
answers that I need. And that'swhat I did, and everybody can do
that. One of the reasons whythis conference for women is so important because
there was a time where I feltlike I was on an island by myself,
and I've learned I'm not. Thereare other women who have. It
may not be the exact same circumstance, but we have the if we talk
about it. Everybody's had someone thatyou know, they didn't listen to your
(27:00):
you know, just man, whateveryou want to say, and so there
are times that you find out thatwe're not alone. And because we're not
alone, there's power in numbers becauseyou weren't hurt. I'm gonna speak up.
I'm gonna get educate and make peopleaware of certain things and let them
know that it's okay. You deservethe best and it's okay for you to
(27:22):
demand the best. If people wouldlike more information, you you're an advocate
for those living with Graves disease andTED. Where can people go for more
information? Definitely? You know,if you have Graves disease like me if
you were just diagnosed with it.First of all, focus on your eyehealth
because up to fifty percent of peoplewith Graves disease may develop TED. You
(27:45):
don't want to say it. Livingwith you, I had to. I'm
trying to kick him out, soyou know he's not paying rent. He's
got to go. But find thatright care team and then educate yourself.
It's it's not even And I thankyou because I tell people it may not
be you. You may not haveGraves disease or TED for your soul,
for anyone in your family, butI can guarantee you you're going to come
(28:07):
in contact with someone complaining of thesame symptoms and if you can help alleviate
their suffering, that's what it's allabout. So I encourage everyone to go
to the website. Focus on TEDdot com, so focus on TA dot
com so that we can make surethat an unwanted guests is taken care of.
Gail Devers, thank you so muchfor joining us. Gail Divers an
(28:29):
American sporting icon of five time Olympia, nine time World champion, and three
time Olympic gold medalist in track andfield who is one of the fastest women
alive for almost two decades, anadvocate for those living with Graves disease and
TED, and a keynote speaker atthe Pennsylvania Conference for Women. For more
information, you can go to PAConference for Women dot org. Gail Devers,
(28:52):
you are an inspiration. Thank youso much. Thank you for having
me and I will see everyone inPhilly. You can listen to all of
today's interviews by going to our stationwebsite and typing in keyword Community. You
can also listen on the iHeartRadio appgay Words Philadelphia Community Podcast. Follow me
on Twitter and Instagram at Lorraine Ballard. I'm Lorraine Ballard Morrow, and I
(29:14):
stand for service to our community andmedia that empowers. What will you stand
for? You've been listening to what'sgoing on ED. Thank you
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